1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a method and system for automatically forwarding wireless electronic communications from a mobile terminal (such as a mobile telephone, wireless modem, etc.) to a predetermined alternate terminal (land line or other mobile terminal) just before the mobile terminal's battery runs down or when service is temporarily interrupted, as when the user goes into a tunnel.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cellular telephone communications has become an integral part of the everyday life of many people, with usage growing by the minute. As more and more people spend more and more time using cellular phones, new problems are recognized. One such problem relates to battery failure in cellular telephones.
Most users regularly charge their batteries, and monitor the power level of the battery, so that they are not caught unawares by unexpected loss of battery power. Some users, however, either through heavy use, neglect, or equipment failure, may be faced with an unanticipated battery power failure. In the normal course of affairs, a battery failure would simply disconnect the call, and the other party to the call would simply be left with a dead line.
It would be useful if the connection to the other party could be salvaged, and either re-instated if the mobile user could switch batteries, or re-routed to a different number where the second user could finish the telephone call by leaving a message or talking to the same person at a different number, or even talking to a different person if desired.
Switching of cellular telephone calls is well known and the subject of industry standards. This switching, however, is generally restricted to the switching necessary to continue a call when it moves among different cells within a cellular network rather than when there is a disconnect. Such switching is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 09-064985.
This conventional switching presupposes that the cellular telephone is still capable of making a connection, which is not the case where its battery has run down.